System and method for electronically identifying connections of a system used to make connections

ABSTRACT

One embodiment is directed to a system that comprises a plurality of ports configured to establish a plurality of physical information connections and a plurality of physical scanning connections using cables. Each information connection is associated with a respective scanning connection. Each scanning connection is separate from the respective information connection associated with that scanning connection. The system is configured to selectively transmit a respective scanning signal from each port over a respective one of the scanning connections. The system is configured to selectively receive a respective scanning signal at each port from a respective one of the scanning connections. Connection information is derived from the scanning signals communicated over the scanning connections. Other embodiments are disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED CASES

This is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/020,843,filed Feb. 4, 2011, (pending), which, in turn, is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/398,509, filed Mar. 5, 2009, which issuedas U.S. Pat. No. 7,907,537, which, in turn, is a divisional of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/017,653, filed Dec. 12, 2001, whichissued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,519,003, which, in turn, is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/972,159, filed Nov. 17, 1997, whichissued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,421,322. These applications are herebyincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates generally to communications systems, andmore particularly, to a system and method for electronically identifyingall connections established through a cross-connect system.

Cross-connect systems are widely used in the telecommunications industryto effect signal line connections between various types ofcommunications equipment managed by different information serviceproviders. Within a central office or exchange environment, for example,tens of thousands of information signal lines from a firstcommunications equipment facility must be connected to respective signallines from a second communications equipment facility in a manner thatprovides for a high degree of connection reliability. To this end,industry-standard cross-connect systems typically utilizehighly-reliable passive connection devices, often termed cross-connectcircuits, to effect the required signal line connections. In a typicalapplication, a pair of cross-connect circuits are used to connect asingle signal line of a first equipment facility with a single signalline of a second equipment facility.

Identifying the specific location and determining the status of allcross-connected circuits within a central office has heretofore requiredvarying degrees of manual intervention, such as manually tracing ahard-wired or temporary patch connection in an effort to identify thelocation of the cross-connect circuits terminating opposing ends of eachconnection. It can be readily appreciated that manually acquiringconnection information and updating this information on a regular basisrepresents a sizable and costly challenge.

It would appear that introducing active electronic components within theinformation signal paths would provide the opportunity to implement acost effective and efficient means of acquiring connection informationfor a cross-connect system. A number of proposed prior art solutionsrequire the introduction of active electronics into the informationsignal paths in order to effect transmissions between cross-connectedcircuits. Various time-sharing and frequency multiplexing schemes havebeen proposed that require sharing of the information signal paths, interms of transmission time or frequency bandwidth, which necessarilyrequire the implementation of a collision detection and resolutionscheme in order to reduce the likelihood of disturbing informationsignal transmissions over the connections.

Introducing active components into the information signal circuit paths,however, has proven to systemically reduce the overall reliability ofcertain cross-connect systems to unacceptable levels. The possibility ofinformation signal disruption and the possible malfunction or failure ofthe active electronics within the information signal conductivity pathhas prompted most, if not all, manufacturers of cross-connect systems toexclusively use passive cross-connect components within the informationsignal path. Although passive connection devices provide a requisitelevel of reliability, such passive devices significantly complicate theeffort of developing a fully automatic, electronic implementation foridentifying the location and status of all cross-connected circuits andconnections established through a central office. The present inventionprovides such an implementation.

SUMMARY

The present invention is directed to a system and method forelectronically identifying connections established through across-connect system. The present invention provides for theidentification of all hard-wired and temporary patch connections, andany modifications made to existing cross-connect circuit connections.Connection identification and status information is acquired in nearreal-time and stored in a database which is accessible by a user througha graphical user interface (GUI).

TRACE or lamp wires, which are connected between respective pairs ofcross-connect circuits in accordance with a standard industry practice,are utilized in an unconventional manner so as to form a scanning bus.The information signal paths established through the cross-connectcircuits remain undisturbed. A scanning signal is communicated betweeneach pair of cross-connected circuits over the TRACE conductor. In theevent a patch cord is used to temporarily redirect a signal connection,the scanning signal is transmitted over the shield or sleeve conductorof the patch cord, the patch cord shield thus being incorporated as partof the overall scanning bus. The scanning signal provides identificationand other information concerning the transmitting circuit.

A circuit receiving the scanning signal communicates its identificationinformation and that of the transmitting circuit derived from thescanning signal to a central computer. The identification informationacquired by the central computer from all receiving cross-connectcircuits provides identification and status information for all circuitswithin the cross-connect system. In one embodiment, all circuits of across-connect system are scanned and identification information acquiredin the time required to transmit a single cross-connect circuit ID bitstring, irrespective of the total number of cross-connect circuitsincluded within the cross-connect system.

Various types of information concerning each connection establishedwithin a cross-connect system is maintained in a database and updated innear real-time so as to reflect the current state of all circuitconnections. A graphical user interface cooperates with the database toprovide a user the ability to access connection records of interest, tovisually display simulated depictions of selected connections, and togenerate a variety of reports derived from the connection informationmaintained in the database. The graphical user interface may also beused to guide a technician to specific circuit locations to effectrepairs, establish a new connection or redirect an existing connectionthrough use of a patch cord.

A “patch pending” file may be created which indicates variousconnections or disconnections to be effected by a technician toaccomplish a particular objective. A patch pending file typicallycontains information identifying the specific sequence by which patchcord installation or removal is to be accomplished. When executed, thepatch pending file may control multi-colored TRACE LEDs of specifiedcircuits as a means of visually directing the work of a technician whenestablishing and breaking cross-connections.

A patch pending file may also be created to provide informationconcerning contingent or back-up connections that may be established inthe event of a network outage. Such a patch pending file may identifyimportant circuits which require immediate restoration during temporaryor extended outages. Upon occurrence of an actual system outage, anappropriate patch pending file may be selected and executed to implementan efficient, coordinated patching procedure for restoring key circuits.

The above summary of the present invention is not intended to describeeach embodiment or every implementation of the present invention.Advantages and attainments, together with a more complete understandingof the invention, will become apparent and appreciated by referring tothe following detailed description and claims taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a cross-connect apparatus which istypically employed by an information service provider for terminating,cross-connecting, and accessing a number of communication lines;

FIG. 2 is a illustration of a cross-connect apparatus which is typicallyused when cross-connecting a variety of digital communicationsequipment;

FIG. 3 is a depiction of an intelligent cross-connect system whichoperates in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a cross-connect shelf within which anumber of cross-connect circuits and a shelf controller are installed;

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a scanning bus topology and systemarchitecture which is used to communicate scanning signal information inaccordance with a scanning methodology of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is an illustration of a pair of cross-connect circuits whichcommunicate information signal information there between over a standardmulti-conductor connection, and further communicate scanning signalinformation over a trace connection;

FIG. 7 is a front view illustration of the circuit shown in FIG. 6 whichincludes a number of jacks, LEDs, and wire-wrap pins;

FIG. 8 is schematic illustration of one embodiment of the circuit shownin FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is an illustration of a standard bantam plug over which scanningsignal information is communicated by use of the shielding sleeveconductor of the bantam plug;

FIG. 10 is an illustration of a cross-connect shelf which includes ashelf controller that communicates with a pair of connectedcross-connect circuits to effectuate a scanning procedure utilizing thetrace connection in accordance with the principles of the presentinvention;

FIG. 11 is a system level illustration of a scanning apparatus in whichcross-connect circuit identification information is acquired by a shelfcontroller and communicated to a main computer for storage in across-connect database;

FIG. 12 illustrates an embodiment of a shelf controller whichcommunicates a scanning signal through the shielding sleeve of a patchcord connecting a pair of connected cross-connect circuits for thepurpose of determining the identity of the connected circuits;

FIG. 13 is a system block diagram depicting the various componentsconstituting one embodiment of a shelf controller;

FIGS. 14-15 illustrate in flow diagram form various process stepsassociated with the control of single or multiple TRACE LEDs inaccordance with an embodiment of a scanning methodology of the presentinvention;

FIG. 16A illustrates one embodiment of a shelf controller circuit whichincludes a number of receive and transmit registers associated with eachof a number of cross-connect circuits with which the shelf controllercommunicates;

FIG. 16B illustrates in greater detail various receive and transmitregisters and corresponding receiver and transmitter devices, inaddition to other components, which are embodied in, and communicatewith, the shelf controller circuit embodiment shown in FIG. 16A;

FIG. 16C illustrates a portion of the shelf controller shown generallyin FIGS. 16A-16B embodied in one or more ASICs;

FIGS. 17-19 illustrate in flow diagram form various process stepsassociated with a scanning methodology in accordance with a firstembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 20 is an illustration of transmit and receive registers and acollision detection circuit associated with a pair of cross-connectedcircuits which are used to facilitate the implementation of the scanningmethodology depicted in FIGS. 17-19;

FIGS. 21A-21B illustrate state tables associated with the respectivecircuits A and B illustrated in FIG. 20, the tables depicting the stateof the transmit and receive registers and the efficacy of collisiondetection during implementation of the scanning methodology depicted inFIGS. 17-19;

FIG. 22 is a schematic illustration of one embodiment of the collisiondetection circuit shown in FIG. 20;

FIGS. 23A-23C illustrate timing diagrams associated with the operationof the collision detection circuit shown in FIG. 22;

FIGS. 24-25 depict in flow diagram form various process steps associatedwith a scanning methodology in accordance with a second embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 26 illustrates various process steps associated with a scanningmethodology in accordance with a third embodiment of the invention;

FIGS. 27-28 respectively illustrate a lost connection and new connectionmonitoring procedure in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention and;

FIGS. 29-36 illustrate various information screens which are displayableto a user of the intelligent cross-connect system through use of agraphical user interface which cooperatively operates with across-connect database.

While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternativeforms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in thedrawings and will be described in detail. It is to be understood,however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to theparticular embodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of the illustrated embodiments, referenceis made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and inwhich is shown by way of illustration, various embodiments in which theinvention may be practiced. It is to be understood that the embodimentsmay be utilized and structural changes may be made without departingfrom the scope of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. 1, there isprovided a generalized depiction of a cross-connect apparatus whichprovides a situs for terminating, cross-connecting, and accessing anumber of transmission lines capable of communicating signals of varyingtypes. A number of the cross-connect apparatuses of the type shown inFIG. 1 are typically installed in equipment frames or bays andinterconnected as part of a telephony network. The cross-connect baysserve as a centralized hubs for interconnecting various types ofequipment which may communicate information at various data rates.

By way of example, a digital trunk 36 includes a number of signal lines38 associated with a first communications equipment facility, each ofthe signal lines 38 being terminated or otherwise coupled to arespective cross-connect circuit 44 installed in a patch panel or shelf40. A second digital trunk 46 operated by a second communicationsequipment facility includes a number of signal lines 48 which areterminated on respective cross-connect circuits 54 mounted in a secondpatch panel or shelf 50. Individual circuits 44 of shelf 40 aretypically “cross-connected” to respective circuits 54 of shelf 50through use of either hard-wired connections or temporary patchconnections established therebetween. As such, a digital signaltransmitted through signal line 38 a of the digital trunk 36, forexample, is cross-connected to signal line 48 a of the digital trunk 46over cross-connected circuits 44 a and 54 a respectively mounted inpatch shelves 40 and 50. It is noted that circuits 44 a, 54 a of patchshelves 40, 50 are connected via a hard-wired connection 56 in thedepiction provided in FIG. 1, but may alternatively be establishedthrough use of a temporary patch connection, such as patch connection 58connecting circuits 44 b and 54 b.

At a typical central office site, tens or hundreds of thousands ofsignal lines must be properly interconnected, identified, and managed inorder to provide an acceptable level of system integrity andreliability. Identifying the specific location of all interconnectedcircuits within a central office is a long-standing problem whichheretofore has been only partially addressed. A cross-connect trackingsystem and methodology in accordance with the principles of the presentinvention fully addresses the complex problem of identifying allinterconnected cross-connect circuits established through a centraloffice, and further identifies whether such interconnections areestablished over a hard-wired or temporary patch connection. Anymodifications made to existing circuit connections are detected in nearreal-time, whether such modifications are established over hard-wired orpatch connections.

In one embodiment, various types of information concerning eachconnection established within the central office is maintained in adatabase which is updated in near real-time so as to reflect the currentstate of all connections. A graphical user interface cooperates with thedatabase, typically under user control, and provides a user the abilityto access connection records of interest, to visually display simulateddepictions of selected connections, and to generate a variety of reportsderived from the connection information maintained in the database. Thegraphical user interface may also be used to guide a technician througha maze of connections to specific circuit locations which may requirerepair or redirection through use of a patch cord.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary configuration of a digital cross-connect(DSX) system of a type suitable for employment in an intelligentcross-connect system of the present invention. The cross-connect systemshown in FIG. 2 is typically used as an interconnection point betweenoutside plant facilities and telecommunications equipment foraccommodating high-speed digital connections having data rates on theorder of 1 Mbps to 50 Mbps. It is important to note that a typicaldigital cross-connect system contains only passive connections which areextremely reliable, such that no active electronics interfere with theinformation signals passing through the cross-connect system. Thoseskilled in the art appreciate that stringent reliability requirementsestablished by information service providers severely limit andtypically preclude the use of active electronics within the informationsignal circuit path, which significantly increases the difficulty ofeffectively and efficiently determining the identity of all connectionsestablished within a cross-connect system.

The cross-connect system shown in FIG. 2 provides a termination pointfor permanently connected equipment, and also accommodates a series ofconnection jacks, termed bantam jacks in the industry, whereby patchcords may be employed to temporarily redirect connections. By having allequipment and facilities terminate on a cross-connect system, a serviceprovider is able to manually patch around trouble spots, or rearrangeequipment and facilities without service interruption. The particularembodiment shown in FIG. 2 illustrates a DSX-1 system designed toterminate DS 1 (1.544 Mbps) circuits, and also accommodates other datarates such as E1 (2.048 Mbps) or DS3 signals (44.736 Mbps) associatedwith DSX-3 systems.

In FIG. 3, there is illustrated an embodiment of a cross-connect systemwhich operates in accordance with the principles of the presentinvention. In accordance with this embodiment, a central office 60 istypically organized in a hierarchical fashion, and includes a number ofbays or frames 66, each of which houses several shelves 72 ofcross-connect circuits 74. A specified number of individualcross-connect circuits 74 are removably installed in each of the shelves72. A shelf controller 76, also removably housed in each of the shelves72, communicates with each of the cross-connect circuits 74 installedwithin the shelf 72.

An embodiment of a shelf 72 within which a number of individualcross-connect circuits 74 and a shelf controller 76 are removablyinstalled is illustrated in FIG. 4. A number of individual cross-connectcircuits 74 may also be grouped to form packs 73 of circuits 74, such asfour circuits 74 being grouped to form a modular “quad” card 73. Theshelf 72 includes a printed circuit board (PCB) backplane which providesfor the communication of information and power signals between thecircuits 74 and controller 76, and provides connectivity with othercircuits 74, shelf controllers 76, and components of the cross-connectsystem 60.

Each of the shelf controllers 76 communicates with a bay controller 64which, in turn, communicates with a main computer 62, such as a centraloffice computer. In one embodiment, the bay controller 64 cooperateswith the main computer 62 to coordinate the activities of the shelfcontrollers 76 installed in one or more of the bays 66. A bay controller64 may, for example, service up to 32 bays 66 of cross-connectequipment. In an alternative configuration, each shelf controller 76 maycommunicate directly with the main computer 62. The main computer 62 maybe employed as a central information and control resource for a numberof bay controllers 64 maintained at a central office 60. It isunderstood that the bays 66 of cross-connect equipment constituting acentral office may be situated at a single location, such as a building,or distributed at a number of geographically separated locations.

Connection information is acquired from individual shelf controllers 76and communicated to the main computer 62, where it is stored in across-connect database 65. A graphical user interface (GUI) 63 isemployed by a user to access the database 65. It is understood that themain computer 62 may constitute a single computer platform or adistributed platform connected via a network or other communicationsinfrastructure. The database 65 may constitute a single non-volatilememory device or a distributed memory device.

A cross-connect system operating in accordance with the principles ofthe present invention advantageously exploits TRACE wire connections asa communications conduit for implementing various connection sensing,identification, and monitoring functions. It is understood in theindustry that TRACE wire or lamp wire is used in a conventional DSXsystem to connect the TRACE LEDs of each of the cross-connected circuitsfor purposes of manually tracing a connection. The cross-connect systemof the present invention utilizes TRACE wire and patch cord connectionsto effectively form scanning busses over which scanning signals aretransmitted in accordance with a unique scanning methodology.

As will be discussed in greater detail, this unconventional use of TRACEwire and patch cord connections within a cross-connect system, incombination with the scanning protocol described hereinbelow, providesfor the continuous and near real-time acquisition of connection statusinformation which is maintained and updated in a centralizedcross-connect database. It is noted that the term “scanning bus” as usedwithin the context of the embodiments disclosed herein refers to eitherone or both of TRACE wire and patch cord connections. In a generalcontext, a scanning bus is intended to refer to any connection, whetherelectrical, optical or otherwise, within a cross-connect system otherthan a connection intended to be used exclusively for communicatinginformation signals.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, a scanning bus or network isillustrated which is used to communicate connection and otherinformation between cross-connect circuits, shelf controllers, and amain computer of the intelligent cross-connect system. In thisconfiguration, the scanning bus includes a network connection 86 overwhich shelf controllers 76 of a particular bay or bays 66 communicatewith each other. The network connection 86 may constitute an EIA-485serial communication connection, which is understood to be afour-conductor, multi-drop, full-duplex balanced signal serial busconnection.

For purposes of illustration, and not of limitation, it is assumed thata central office of a telecommunications service provider includesone-hundred bays 66 of cross-connect equipment. Each bay 66 includesthirteen shelves 72, with each shelf 72 housing eighty-four individualcross-connect circuits 74. The shelf controllers 76 installed inrespective shelves 72 of each bay 66 communicate with a bay controller64 and with a main 62 over a private ethernet connection 92. As such,each bay controller 64 may be viewed as constituting a node of thecentral office scanning network.

The central office or main computer 62 accumulates connectioninformation acquired by each of the shelf controllers 76 to developcross-connection records for the entire central office. Each of the baycontrollers 64 cooperates with their respective shelf controllers 76 todetermine all hard-wired and patch connections established at thecentral office, to detect changes to the various connections, and toupdate a cross-connect database 65 accessed by the main computer 62 on anear real-time basis, such that any connection changes are automaticallyreflected in the continuously updated database. Through the use of agraphical user interface 63, a service provider is able to query anddisplay cross-connect records 65 for any circuit within the system.

A hard-wired connection may be established between a pair of circuitshoused within the same bay, such as circuits 3 and 2 of shelves 12 and2, respectively, of bay 1, or between circuits housed within the samebay and shelf. A hard-wired connection may also be established betweencircuits housed in different bays, such as between circuit 3 of shelf 1,bay 1, and circuit 84 of shelf 13, bay 99. Further, patch cordconnections may be established between circuit pairs of a common bay orof different bays, such as between circuits 84 of shelf 1 for bays 1 and2, respectively. It is noted that a bridging repeater may be employedwithin the scanning bus configuration for effecting scanning operationsbetween cross-connect circuits of distantly located bays.

In one embodiment, a bay controller 64 is embodied as a single boardcomputer or PC motherboard running an appropriate communicationsprotocol to effect transmission between the private ethernet 92 and theshelf controllers 76. The ethernet protocol may be an ASN.1 compliantsimple network management protocol (SNMP) running on top of TCP/IP. Datarates ranging between approximately 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps are obtainableusing this arrangement. A bay controller 64 communicates with a numberof shelf controllers 76 using an EIA-485 bus protocol, in which the baycontroller 64 operates as a single master which polls the shelfcontrollers 76. The shelf controllers 76 transmit information only whenpolled by the bay controller 64.

In further discussing this embodiment, each shelf 72 is assigned aunique 48 bit ID number. During an initial system configuration phase,the bay controller 64 retrieves the 48 bit ID of all shelves 72connected thereto. The bay controller 64 then assigns each shelf an 11bit ID number which will be used in subsequent communications.

Arbitration on the EIA-485 connection is facilitated by operating in afour wire, full-duplex mode; two for transmit, and two for receive. Ifthere is more than one new device on a particular EIA-485 bus, as mayoccur at initial power-up, an arbitration scheme using the 48-bit shelfID is employed to resolve collisions. It is noted that in an embodimentof a shelf controller that utilizes a universal asynchronousreceiver/transmitter (UART), the UART is byte oriented and generallymust complete the current byte transmission before reacting to acollision.

When a collision on an EIA-485 connection occurs, each node initiallyuses the least significant bit of the shelf ID to resolve the collision.When a new device poll event occurs and bus inactivity has beenverified, each node attempts to respond to the new device poll. If acollision occurs, the nodes stop transmitting. If the shelf ID bit of anode implicated in the collision is zero, this node responds againimmediately. The next most significant bit of the shelf ID for this nodeis then pointed to for arbitrating subsequent collisions. Otherwise, thenode awaits the next new device poll event.

Most, if not all, SNMP commands and responses between the main computer62, through which the cross-connect database 65 is accessed, and the baycontrollers 64 are generic queries and responses conforming to theManagement Information Base (MIB) format. The MIB is an industrystandard data format which provides for the network management of adevice. Within its device-specific structure, the MIB data contains allof the information about the bay controller 64 and all of the associatedshelf controllers 76 and alarm collection shelves, as well as any futuredevices that are connected to it. A request from the bay controller 64typically indicates the element of the MIB data of interest, and theresponse is generally the same message with appropriate value(s) added.When an event occurs, the bay controller 64 initiates an SNMP trap. Themain computer 62 then responds in an appropriate manner so that the baycontroller 64 is informed that the message was received.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, there is illustrated a pair of connectedcross-connect circuits 102, 104 in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent invention. In this configuration, each cross-connect circuit102, 104 plugs into a shelf or chassis 100. Permanent equipmentconnections are terminated on the rear of the shelf 100. The permanentconnections established on the rear of the shelf 100 are effectivelypassed through the cross-connect circuits 102, 104 to the front of thecircuits 102, 104. Each piece of equipment may be cross-connected toother equipment components typically by installing a five-conductorjumper cable to terminals extending from the front of circuits 102, 104.

The five-conductor cable is an industry standard cable that is used by avariety of cross-connect equipment suppliers. The five conductorssupport a transmit and receive pair, plus an additional TRACE conductor.In a DSX-1 configuration, this five-conductor cable constitutes atwisted pair cable that is “wire-wrapped” to appropriate terminal postsprovided on the circuits 102, 104. In the case of a DSX-3 system,cross-connections are established using two coaxial jumpers for transmitand receive, along with a third jumper that connects the TRACE linecontacts. In a fiber optic cross-connect system, a separate electricalconductor is typically used as the TRACE conductor. Alternatively,connection information in the form of optical signals may becommunicated along a separate fiber optic TRACE connection.

When used in a conventional manner, the TRACE or “TL” connectionprovides a means of manually tracing the connection betweencross-connected circuits, such as circuits 102, 104 shown in FIG. 6. Byactivating the TRACE on one circuit, such as circuit 102, through use ofa switch or jack operation, the TRACE line is grounded, which causesTRACE LEDs 106 of the respective circuits 102, 104 to illuminate.Illumination of the TRACE LEDs 106 of a cross-connected circuit pairpermits manual tracing of the circuits and identification of thecross-connected circuit locations within the central office.

FIG. 7 is a front view depiction of the circuits 102, 104 shown in FIG.6, and illustrates an embodiment in which a single TRACE LED 106 isemployed. The cross-connect circuit embodied in the schematicillustration of FIG. 8 includes two TRACE LEDs 106, namely, a red and agreen LED 106. The front panel of a cross-connect circuit mayadditionally include a two digit, seven segment display withincrementing momentary pushbuttons for the two digits and a clearmomentary pushbutton, all of which is controlled with firmware. Varioustypes of status and instructional information may be displayed to atechnician through use of the circuit display. It is noted that firmwareresiding in a memory provided in a cross-connect circuit, shelfcontroller, or bay controller may be installed and updated byimplementing an appropriate firmware downloading procedure.

It is well appreciated by those skilled in the art that the task ofaccurately identifying the location and status of all cross-connectedcircuits within a central office, and updating connection records on aregular basis, represents a significant challenge to the serviceprovider. A telecommunications service provider, for example, may manageover one hundred bays of cross-connect equipment maintained at a singlelocation, with many such installations established in various cities. Byway of further example, a single central office location which housesone hundred bays containing thirteen shelves within which eighty-fourcross-connect circuits are installed provides for a total of 109,200connections established at this single location.

Maintaining accurate connection records for hundreds of thousands ofconnections has proven to be impractical, if not impossible, usingconventional manual tracing approaches. The cross-connect monitoringsystem of the present invention provides for accurate and continuouselectronic monitoring and updating of connection records for any numberof connections.

FIG. 8 is a schematic representation of the MONITOR, OUTPUT, and INPUTbantam jacks 108, 110, 112 and ancillary circuits shown in FIG. 7. Apartial showing of a typical bantam plug 120, which is connected to eachof the opposing ends of a patch cord, is shown in FIG. 9. The normalfunction of a patch cord when used within a cross-connect system is totemporarily re-direct a circuit connection to a termination pointdifferent from that established by the circuit's hard-wired connection.

As can be seen in FIG. 8, when a bantam plug 120 of a patch cord isinserted into either the OUTPUT jack 110 or INPUT jack 112 of across-connect circuit 102, the circuit connection to the hard-wiredconnection is broken, such that a new conductivity path is establishedover the patch cord. The bantam plug 120 connected at the opposing endof the patch cord may then be inserted into an appropriate OUTPUT orINPUT jack 110, 112 of another cross-connect circuit 104, therebyestablishing a new and generally temporary cross-connection through thepatch cord.

A conventional bantam plug 120 used in the industry for establishingpatch connections typically includes three conductors which areidentified in telephony terms as TIP, RING, and SLEEVE (i.e. SHIELD).The TIP and RING conductors are used to transmit information signals,while the SLEEVE or SHIELD is used as an interference protectionmechanism (e.g., ground shield). As can be seen in FIG. 8, when a bantamplug 120 is inserted into either the OUT or IN jack 110, 112, therespective OUT or IN signal will redirected over the patch cord, and theconnection to the TN/RN wired cross-connect 122 will be broken. It isnoted that the TL, TR, and RN signal contacts 122 represent hard-wired(e.g., wire-wrapped) connections, and the IN/OUT R, T connections 124represent the rear permanent connections.

Referring now to FIGS. 10-12, there is depicted an embodiment of variouscircuit elements which are used in an intelligent digital cross-connectsystem to electronically and automatically identify and monitor allconnections established through the circuits of the cross-connect systemon a continuous basis. In accordance with this embodiment, and asdiscussed briefly hereinabove, the TRACE wire conductor 133 is utilizedin an unconventional manner, in that a scanning signal is communicatedthrough the TRACE wire conductor 133 in accordance with a uniquecross-connect scanning methodology.

In broad and general terms, a shelf controller 136 generates a scanningsignal, which includes location identification information associatedwith a transmitting cross-connect circuit 132, and transmits thescanning signal across the TRACE wire conductor 133 of the transmittingcircuit 132. The scanning signal communicated by the transmittingcross-connect circuit 132 is received by a receiving cross-connectcircuit 134. Having received that scanning signal at the circuit 134,the shelf controller 136 associated with the receiving circuit 134reports the transmitting and receiving circuit location identificationinformation to a main computer, such as the bay controller 64 or maincomputer 62 shown in FIG. 3. It is understood that the receiving circuit134 may be located in the same shelf 130 as the transmitting circuit132, a different shelf 130 within the same bay, or a shelf of a baydistantly located from that housing the transmitting circuit 132.

The shelf controller 136 dedicates an individual connection for eachTRACE connection of individual cross-connect circuits installed in aparticular shelf 130. Each shelf controller 136 transmits circuitlocation identification information, typically by use of a digitalscanning signal, across each of its TRACE wire connections either in aparticular sequence or in parallel depending on the particular scanningalgorithm employed. By transmitting a location identification signal onone port and receiving a location information signal on another port,the shelf controllers 136 of a cross-connect system collectivelyidentify the location of all circuits established through thecross-connect system. Unused circuits are also identified. All shelfcontrollers 136 in all equipment bays proceed through this generalscanning operation in order to identify all of their respectiveconnections. Each shelf controller 136 will then report its connectioninformation to a main computer 64 via a data connection.

Concerning the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 12, and as brieflydiscussed hereinabove, a patch cord 143 may be employed to temporarilyre-direct information signals between cross-connect circuits other thanthose connected through use of a hard-wired connection. When the bantamplug of a patch cord in sensed in either the IN or OUT jack 112, 110, ascanning signal produced by the shelf controller 136 is transmitted overthe SLEEVE or SHIELD conductor of the patch cord 143 to a newly selectedreceiving cross-select circuit 134. Information identifying the locationof the transmitting circuit 132 is encoded in the scanning signal andused together with information identifying the selected receivingcircuit 134 to identify the newly established patch connection. Thisinformation is similarly communicated to a central computer.

Using the SLEEVE or SHIELD conductor of the patch cord 143advantageously provides a conduit for communicating scanning signalinformation without requiring additional patch cord conductors. It isunderstood that modifying the configuration of an industry standardpatch cable so as to include an additional conductor would result inincreased costs and the potential of making obsolete hundreds ofthousands of cross-connect patch cables currently in use. Because thetransmission speed of the scanning data is relatively low, noappreciable interference problems arise with the use of the shieldconductor of the patch cord 143.

A generalized system block diagram of a shelf controller 150 is depictedin FIG. 13. In accordance with this embodiment, the shelf controller 150includes a micro-controller 152 which communicates with a memory 154 andvarious digital devices 158, 160, 162 over a data bus 164. The generalfunction of the digital interface circuits 158, 160, 162 is to receiveor transmit data from a large number of input/output sources and, whenrequested, present this data to the micro-controller's data bus 164. Themicro-controller 152 then stores all of the connection and statusinformation into the memory 154, and when requested, transmits thisinformation over the serial data bus 168 to the main computer. Themicro-controller 152 communicates with an ancillary processor, such as abay controller 64, through serial data transceiver circuits 156.

A digital interface circuit 158, which is coupled to a number of jacksense lines, receives signals indicating the presence or absence of abantam plug in any one of the MONITOR jack 108, the OUTPUT jack 110, orthe INPUT jack 112. A digital interface device 162 communicates with aTRACE LED 106 and controls the illumination, flashing, color selection,and other operations of the TRACE LED 106. Using the jack sense lines tosense the presence of a bantam plug in the MONITOR jack 108, the shelfcontroller 150 may activate the TRACE LEDs 106 for a pair of connectedcircuits so as to simulate a “trace” as would otherwise occur within aconventional cross-connect systems.

In general, the scanning signal transmitted through a TRACE connectionor patch connection provides location identification and statusinformation regarding the transmitting cross-connect circuit. In Table 1below, there is provided various types of information that may beencoded in a scanning signal in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent invention.

TABLE 1 SCANNING SIGNAL INFORMATION NO. OF BITS Shelf Number 11 or morebits  Circuit Number 7 or more bits Path Number 2 bits Command 8 bitsChecksum 8 or more bits Synchronizing Bits 2/8 bits   (Start/Stop)

In one embodiment, the identification of the shelf number andcross-connect circuit number are encoded using eleven and seven bits,respectively, irrespective of whether the scanning signal is transmittedover a TRACE wire connection or patch connection. The Path Number fieldindicates the transmission path as being either the TRACE, Patch IN, orPatch OUT connection. It is to be understood that the scanning signalfields provided in Table 1 represents a non-exhaustive list ofinformation variables which may be encoded in a scanning signal. Otherinformation different from or in addition to that included in Table 1may also be encoded in the scanning signal.

Each of the shelf controllers maintains a local database ofidentification and status information concerning the cross-connectcircuits with which it communicates. Table 2 below provides an exampleof various types of information which may be maintained and updated inthe local database of a shelf controller.

TABLE 2 LOCAL DATABASE INFORMATION NO. OF BITS Full Shelf Number 48 bitsAbbreviated Shelf Number 11 bits Circuit Parameters: (Number of bits ×Number of circuits) TRACE (hard-wired) Circuit ID Circuit Number 7 bitsPath Number 2 bits Patch (temporary) Circuit ID Circuit Number 7 bitsPath Number 2 bits MONITOR Jack Occupied 1 bit Patch IN Jack Occupied 1bit Patch OUT Jack Occupied 1 bit LED State 4 bits Red LED OK 1 bitGreen LED OK 1 bit Circuit Pack Present 1 bit

The four LED bits provide for four LED states, including OFF for bothRed and Green LEDS. Combining these states provides the opportunity touse yellow or orange, depending on the current limiting resistorschosen. The LEDs may change state every eighth of a second allowing fora variety of LED presentations to be implemented.

As was discussed previously, the scanning signals which are received bya receiving cross-connect circuit are communicated to a main computerand preferably stored in a database containing cross-connectinformation. An exemplary set of database fields for such a database isprovided below in Table 3. In general, the cross-connect databaseprovides for the storage and access of a comprehensive set ofinformation concerning each and every cross-connection establishedthrough a central office.

In accordance with one embodiment, the database includes fieldsgenerally corresponding to those associated with the informationprovided in Tables 1 and 2 above, as well as other information ofinterest, such as the central office location, name, floor, and locationof a particular bay, connection history, and user or administratorcomments, for example.

TABLE 3 DATABASE FIELDS DESCRIPTION City Name of the City Central OfficeName of the Central Office/Exchange Floor Floor Location of theCross-Connect Bay Bay No/Name Bay/Frame Name Shelf No. Shelf NumberCircuit No. Circuit Number or Port within Shelf CLLI Name CommonLanguage Location Identifier Circuit Type Identifies whether CircuitPort is a “Facility Side”, or “Network Side” Port Circuit DescriptionFree-Format Description Field for the Customer Connection StatusIdentifies whether the Port is Connected or not Connected ConnectionHistory Provides a History of Connection Status Information - IncludingTime/Date Stamp, Circuits Connections and Disconnections CommentsFree-Format Comment Field with USER ID, Date/Time Stamp Cross-ConnectFields of Detailed Connection Information Information

One of several functions performed by the shelf controller 150 involvesdetecting a change in the condition of a patch cord, such as whether anypatch cords have been installed into or removed from a particular jackof a particular cross-connect circuit. As can be best seen in FIG. 8,additional electrical contacts within each of the MONITOR, OUTPUT, andINPUT jacks 108, 110, 112 provide an indication to the shelf controller150 as to the status of these jacks (i.e., bantam plug present orabsent). All of the jack sense lines are connected via the backplane ofa shelf chassis to the shelf controller 150. The micro-controller 152periodically polls the status of each of the bantam jacks, stores thestatus information in the memory 154, and reports this information tothe main computer when requested.

In general, when the main computer issues a command instructing aselected shelf controller to activate the TRACE LED of a particularcircuit, the shelf controller causes the appropriate circuit LED toilluminate according to a pre-established flash pattern. It is notedthat a flash pattern refers to a LED flash program that indicatesvarious LED illumination parameters, such as steady and/or flashdurations, flash speed, single or multiple colors usage, and other LEDoperating parameters. The TRACE LED will typically remain illuminateduntil the shelf controller receives an instruction from the maincomputer to turn off the TRACE LED or until such time as a flash patterntimer expires. The main computer may also initiate a command instructinga selected shelf controller to cause the TRACE LED of a particularcircuit to flash. The shelf controller may store FLASH-ON and FLASH-OFFtiming information, and will typically cause a TRACE LED to continueflashing at a specified rate until it is requested to terminate theflashing operation.

One particular function that is implemented through execution of theTRACE LED control and jack sense procedures, as mentioned previously, isthe simulation of an industry-standard “trace” operation. Such anoperation typically involves placing a bantam plug into the MONITOR jackof a particular circuit to initiate the trace. In a standard digitalcross-connect system, this would result in grounding of the TRACE wire,thereby causing the TRACE LEDs at both ends of the circuit connection toilluminate.

In accordance with the present invention, however, insertion of thebantam plug in the MONITOR jack is sensed by the shelf controller 150which, in response, transmits an LED flash command over the scanningbus. The LED flash command is decoded by the shelf controller associatedwith the receiving partner circuit which causes the LED(s) of thepartner circuit to illuminate in accordance with a selected flashpattern.

A more detailed description of various process steps associated withcontrolling the TRACE LEDs during a trace operation is shown in FIGS. 14and 15. The shelf controller initiates 200 a TRACE simulation procedureby selecting 202 a first circuit installed within the shelf. If an LEDflash command issued by the main computer has been previouslytransmitted 204 with respect to the selected circuit, the shelfcontroller detects this activity and selects 206 another cross-connectcircuit in the shelf. If an LED flash command has not been issued, theshelf controller senses 212 the MONITOR jack of the selected circuit.

If a bantam plug is detected in the MONITOR jack, and if the flashpattern for the selected circuit is not currently active 216, the flashpattern function for the selected cross-connect circuit is initiated 218and the flash pattern timer is turned on. If the MONITOR jack isoccupied 212 and the flash pattern is already active 216, the TRACE LED106 for the selected circuit is set 222 to a steady ON state if theflash pattern timer has expired 220. If the flash pattern timer has notexpired 220, the shelf controller selects 206 another cross-connectcircuit of the shelf.

If a flash command for the selected circuit is not active 204, and theMONITOR jack of the selected circuit is not occupied 212, the flashpattern operation is halted, and the shelf controller selects 206another cross-connect circuit of the shelf. The TRACE simulationprocedure continues until all of the cross-connect circuits of the shelfhave been monitored 208, 210.

Additional TRACE LED control steps are depicted in FIG. 15. The shelfcontroller senses 230 the status of the MONITOR jack of all circuitswith which it communicates. This monitoring process continues until suchtime as a FLASH command is received 232 from the main computer. If thecommand received 238 from the main computer is not a CLEAR LEDinstruction, then the shelf controller initiates 242 an LED flashprocedure for the indicated cross-connect circuits with the indicatedillumination pattern.

If active, the flash pattern is overridden 244 under this condition. Ifthe flash command received 232 from the main computer is a CLEAR LEDinstruction 238, and if the locate flash pattern function is in a flashor steady on state 236, the LED flash is cleared and the flash patternfunction is restored for the indicated cross-connect circuit. If thelocate function is not in a flash or steady on state 236, then the LEDis turned off 234.

It can be appreciated that the cooperative operation between the shelfcontroller and the main computer provides the opportunity to effect afull range of control over the TRACE LEDs for a variety of purposes. Itis noted that one or more LEDs of a cross-connect circuit may becontrolled by the shelf controller, and that the LEDs may bemonochromatic or multi-chromatic in type. By way of example, cooperationbetween the shelf controller and main computer provides the ability toeffectively guide a technician through various patch connection ordisconnection operations.

In one embodiment, a “patch pending” file is created which indicatesvarious connections or disconnections to be effected by a technician toaccomplish a particular objective. The patch pending file, when executedby the main computer, may control multi-colored TRACE LEDs of specifiedcircuits as a means of visually directing the work of a technician whenestablishing and breaking cross-connections. A flashing green LEDindication, for example, may identify circuits in which a patch cord isto be inserted, while a flashing red LED indication may identifycircuits in which an existing patch cord is to be removed.

A patch pending file typically contains information identifying thespecific sequence by which patch cord installation or removal is to beaccomplished by a technician. The main computer then steps a technicianthrough each change, one circuit pair at a time. Since the main computerknows precisely when and where a patch cord is to be inserted orremoved, the implicated LEDs may continue to flash until the technicianeffects a proper connection or disconnection for a particular circuit.

By way of further example, a patch pending file may be created whichprovides information concerning contingent or back-up connections thatmay be established in the event of a network outage. In a largecommunications network with critical circuits, for example, a patchpending file may identify important circuits which require immediaterestoration during temporary or extended outages. When a system outageoccurs within a typical central office, technicians typically use ashot-gun approach when attempting to identify all cross-connectedcircuits effected by the outage and the location of temporary patchesthat must be effected in order to restore important circuit connections.Creation of a patch pending file well in advance of an outage situation,provides an opportunity for the service provider to develop awell-considered strategy for dealing with any number of potential outagescenarios.

Upon occurrence of an actual system outage, an appropriate patch pendingfile may be selected and executed to implement an efficient, coordinatedpatching procedure for restoring key circuits. On-site technicians maythen quickly proceed through the cross-connect system guided by the LEDpatch sequencing process in their effort to patch and unpatch specifiedcircuit connections. It can be appreciated that use of patch pendingfiles in this manner saves precious time in restoring important andother circuits impacted by an outage, which would otherwise be wasted onlooking up records and sorting out needed connection information understressful conditions associated with a major outage.

Referring now to FIGS. 16A-27, there is depicted various embodiments ofa scanning methodology and apparatus by which all connectionsestablished through a cross-connect system or central office may beidentified, and status information acquired and updated for allconnections on a continuous basis. To facilitate an understanding of thevarious scanning approaches, reference is made to the circuit 600depicted in FIG. 16A. The circuit 600 is typically incorporated as partof the shelf controller and may be embodied in a micro-controller, anApplication Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) or Field ProgrammableGate Array (FPGA), for example.

The circuit 600 includes a number of receive registers 602 and transmitregisters 604 associated with each cross-connect circuit coupled to theshelf controller. In a shelf configuration in which 84 cross-connectcircuits are housed, for example, the circuit 600 will include 84receive register sets 608 and 84 transmit register sets 618, onereceiver and transmit register set 608, 618 being respectivelyassociated with each of the 84 cross-connect circuits.

The particular configuration of the circuit 600 may be varied toaccommodate a variety of processing, speed, synchronization, andASIC/FPGA floor planning (i.e., circuit layout) considerations. By wayof example, each receive and transmit register set 608, 618 respectivelyincludes a TRACE register 610, 620, a Patch IN register 612, 622, and aPatch OUT register 614, 624. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 16A,each of the TRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT registers constitutes aFirst-In-First-Out (FIFO) register or stack, it being understood thatother buffering or memory implementations may be employed.

In one embodiment, the TRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT FIFOs 610, 612,614 associated with the receive register 602 may each be coupled to arespective receiver circuit (not shown), and the TRACE, Patch IN, andPatch OUT FIFOs 620, 622, 624 associated with the transmit register 604may each be coupled to a respective transmitter circuit (not shown). Inthis configuration, each cross-connect circuit is thus provided withthree transmitters and three receivers. As such, data may be transmittedfrom and received by the three dedicated receive and transmit FIFO setsin a simultaneous or parallel manner. FIG. 16B is generally illustrativeof this particular embodiment.

In an alternative embodiment, a single receiver may be multiplexedacross the TRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT FIFOs 610, 612, 614 associatedwith each cross-connect circuit, and a single transmitter may bemultiplexed across the TRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT FIFOs 620, 622,624. Another alternative configuration, by way of further example,includes a single multiplexed transmitter and three dedicated receivers.It is appreciated that use of a multiplexed receiver or transmitterrequires some form of sequential or selective circuit path switchingamongst the associated receive or transmit FIFOs.

In accordance with a particular circuit 600 embodiment, as isillustrated in FIG. 16C, a single ASIC provides all of the logicrequired to support 16 cross-connect circuits. The number ofcross-connect circuits supported in a particular shelf configuration maybe expanded simply be installing additional ASICs. Each sub-circuit ofan ASIC, such as Circuit #1 or Circuit #N shown in FIG. 16A, includesthree physical pins respectively dedicated to the three circuit paths(i.e., TRACE, Patch IN, Patch OUT). Internally, the receive and transmitlogic for each pin is functionally OR tied.

For purposes of increasing design flexibility and processing speed, theASIC includes three transmitters and three receivers for eachsub-circuit so as to provide for simultaneous data transmission andreception. The pins of the ASIC coupled to each cross-connect circuitinclude the following: TRACE Bus; Patch IN Bus; Patch OUT Bus; MONITORJack Occupied; IN Jack Occupied; OUT Jack Occupied; Red LED; Green LED;and Circuit Pack Present pins. It is noted that a Circuit Pack Presentsignal received at the Circuit Pack Present pin indicates the presenceof particular grouping or pack of cross-connect circuits within theshelf. The ASIC also includes a number of standard pins, such as databus, address bus, CLK, and other control signal pins.

A central processing unit (CPU) or micro-controller of the shelfcontroller cooperates with the circuit 600 to coordinate the operationof the receive and transmit register 602, 604. The receive and transmitFIFOs 602, 604 of a particular cross-connect circuit are employed tostore data pertaining to the connection established between theparticular circuit and the circuit connected thereto, and to effect thevarious scanning procedures implemented in accordance with theprinciples of the present invention.

In accordance with a general scanning methodology, each cross-connectcircuit transmits its unique identification (ID) information or code toa partner circuit connected thereto. The partner circuit receiving thetransmitting circuit's ID code stores this data and, when requested bythe bay controller or main computer, transmits the transmitting circuitID code and its own ID code to the main computer. Other connectionstatus information may also be communicated between the transmitting andreceiving circuits and transmitted to the main computer.

It can be appreciated that only the receiving circuits need transmittheir respective connection information to the main computer in order toobtain the identification of all cross-connected circuit pairs withinthe system. It is important to note that the transmitting side generallydoes not know of the status of the receiving side. A transmittingcircuit, therefore, will continue to transmit at regular intervals, thusproviding a keep-alive signal to the receiving partner circuit.Moreover, after acquiring an initial set of connection information fromall receiving circuits, only those receiving circuits containing newconnection or disconnection information need pass the information to thebay controller or main computer.

In one embodiment, as will be discussed in detail hereinbelow, allcircuit connections will be scanned and identified within the time ittakes to transmit a single cross-connect circuit ID bit string,irrespective of the size of the cross-connect system (i.e., number ofcross-connect circuits). If, for example, it is assumed that a givenscanning methodology employs a circuit ID code of n bits in length, thatstart/stop and stuff bits constitute m bits, and that the clock speed isgiven as CLK Hertz, then the total scan time required to identify allcircuit connections is given by:

(n+m)·(1/CLK)

In stark contrast to conventional schemes in which the time required toidentify all connections established within a cross-connect systemincreases as a function of increasing circuit population, the timerequired to identify all cross-connected circuits using the scanningapproach depicted in FIGS. 17-23C is relatively short and constant(e.g., 100-500 milliseconds), regardless of whether the system containsten thousand, one-hundred thousand, or even a million cross-connectedcircuits.

In the following discussion, reference will be made to a Transmit Tablein connection with various procedures of a scanning operation. Thecircuit 600 depicted in FIG. 16A represents one conceptual embodiment ofa Transmit Table, it being understood that other implementation may beemployed in hardware and software to facilitate the scanningmethodology. Initially, the Transmit Table is established in whichcircuit ID and patch status information is loaded for each of thecircuits coupled to a respective shelf controller of the cross-connectsystem. The loading function, such as that depicted in FIGS. 17-18,takes into consideration all hard-wired connections between circuitpairs, and, importantly, all patch connections established using patchcords connected to the IN/OUT jacks of the circuits. As such, allphysical cross-connections, whether hard-wired or patch connections, areidentified.

A typical Transmit Table loading operation is initiated upon receiving300 a broadcast command issued from the main computer. After receivingthe broadcast command, each of the transmit TRACE FIFOs 620 of eachcross-connect circuit within a shelf is loaded with a TRACEidentification code (TRACE ID). The TRACE ID represents a code whichuniquely identifies the TRACE jack of a particular cross-connectcircuit. In a similar manner, Patch IN and Patch OUT IDs represent codeswhich uniquely identify the Patch IN and Patch OUT jacks of a particularcross-connect circuit. The loading procedure illustrated in FIGS. 17-18is implemented by each shelf controller for all bays of cross-connectequipment in a contemporaneous, parallel manner.

In addition to loading TRACE ID information into respective transmitFIFOs, the shelf controller scans 304 each of the circuit receiveregister 602 to determine 306 if a circuit ID currently resides in thecircuit's receive TRACE FIFO 610. If a valid circuit ID is stored in thereceive TRACE FIFO 610 for a particular circuit, the ID of the partnercircuit has been previously received. As such, the identity of thecross-connected circuits is already known, and the scanning operationneed not be repeated 308 for this circuit connection. Although notrequired, it may be desirable to perform a re-scan operation for theparticular circuit connection.

If a circuit ID is not currently stored in the receiver TRACE FIFO 610for a selected circuit, the shelf controller determines whether a patchcord has been inserted into either of the Patch IN or Patch OUT jacks.In particular, if a circuit ID is not currently residing 310 in thereceive Patch IN FIFO 612 for the selected circuit, the shelf controllerdetermines 312 whether the Patch IN jack is occupied, and if so, adds314 the Patch IN ID to the transmit patch IN FIFO 622 of the TransmitTable for the selected circuit.

If a valid circuit ID currently resides in the receive Patch OUT FIFO614 for the selected circuit, the ID of the partner circuit haspreviously been received and the scanning operation need not be repeatedfor this circuit connection, although it may prove desirable to re-scanthe circuit connection. If not, the Patch OUT jack is sensed 318, and ifoccupied, the shelf controller adds 320 the Patch OUT ID to the transmitpatch OUT FIFO 624 of the Transmit Table for the selected circuit. Allcircuits coupled to the shelf controller are similarly processed 322.After processing all of the respective circuits associated with theshelf controller, the scanning procedure generally depicted in FIG. 19is initiated 324. The shelf controller reports 326 completion of thescanning procedure 324 to the main computer upon completion.

It is to be understood that the general principles of the scanningapproach described herein may be implemented in a manner which does notrequire interaction with a Transmit Table of the type previouslydescribed, but that the description of such a Transmit Table is providedfor illustrating one of several approaches for implementing the presentinvention. Having completed the Transmit Table loading proceduredepicted in FIGS. 17-18, the scanning procedure depicted in FIG. 19 isinitiated by all shelf controllers in a contemporaneous, parallelmanner.

In accordance with this procedure, all circuits within the cross-connectsystem transmit their respective full circuit ID codes according to theprocedure illustrated in FIG. 19. In particular, all shelf controllerstransmit ID and other information for those circuits having circuit IDcodes currently loaded in the Transmit Table. These transmissions cantake place over several circuit paths simultaneously, such as over theTRACE conductor or the Patch IN and OUT conductors.

Collisions are resolved using the approach depicted in FIGS. 20-23C. Toreiterate a significant advantage realized through employment of theinstant scanning technique, all circuit connections are scanned andidentified within the time it takes to transmit a single cross-connectcircuit ID bit string, regardless of number of circuits utilized withinthe cross-connect system.

A “listen before transmitting” approach is employed during the scanningoperation in an attempt to minimize collisions and transmissions acrossthe scanning bus. If a transmission is detected on a connection coupledto a particular circuit identified in the Transmit Table, thetransmitting circuit is prevented from making further transmissions andits ID is removed from the appropriate transmit FIFO 618 of the TransmitTable. In this situation, the incoming transmission is typically, if notexclusively, a circuit ID being communicated from a partner (i.e.,cross-connected) circuit.

Because the circuit IDs for the pair of cross-connected circuits isknown by referencing the appropriate receive FIFO 608 of the receivingcircuit, no further duplicative scanning need occur for thistransmitting circuit. Such duplicative scanning, however, willadvantageously result in the repetitive transmitting of a keep-alivesignal to the receiver, as was previously mentioned. For those circuitsin which transmission activity is not detected, the shelf controllerinstructs all such circuits to begin transmitting their respective IDsaccording to the procedure depicted in FIG. 19.

When a collision is detected on a particular circuit connection, acollision arbitration procedure is initiated whereby one of the twotransmitting circuits (identified as a “transmitter”) is permitted tocontinue transmitting its full ID, and the other circuit is instructedto cease its transmission. This circuit's ID is removed from theTransmit Table, and the circuit is identified as a “receiver” forsubsequent transmissions, although it may be desirable to reset allcircuits to “transmitters” and repeat the collision arbitrationprocedure for each subsequent transmission.

It will be appreciated that no further collisions will occur over theconnection established between these two circuits, assuming that nochange in hard-wired or patch connectivity occurs, because only one ofthe two circuits (i.e., the transmitter circuit) is permitted totransmit its circuit ID and other information during subsequent scanningoperations. The receiver circuit, which has been instructed by the shelfcontroller not to transmit its ID over the present connection duringsubsequent scans, receives and stores the transmitter circuit's ID, and,when instructed, communicates this ID information and its own IDinformation to the main computer.

Any change in hard-wired or patch connectivity with respect to aparticular circuit, regardless of whether the circuit is identified as atransmitter or receiver, is detected by the shelf controller. In such acase, the new connection will be scanned in the same manner as thoseassociated with circuits previously loaded in the Transmit Table. Inthis case, the implicated circuits lose their respective “transmitter”or “receiver” identifications. As such, any modification to an existingconnection or addition of a new connection will be detected andidentified within a subsequent single scanning period (i.e., the time ittakes to transmit a single cross-connect circuit ID bit string).

Referring to FIG. 19, the circuit ID transmission and collisionarbitration steps in accordance with the first embodiment of a scanningmethodology will now be described in greater detail. FIGS. 20-21B willalso be referred to in this discussion. FIG. 20 is an illustration oftwo cross-connected circuits each including respective transmit (XMIT)and receive (RCV) FIFOs 381, 389 and 383, 391 coupled to respectivecollision detection circuits 385, 387. The pair of circuits A and B areconnected via an information signal connection (not shown) and a TRACEbus connection 393. FIGS. 21A, 21B depict in table form the state of theXMIT and RCV FIFOs 381, 383, 389, 391 of circuits A and B whensimultaneously transmitting circuit ID information over the TRACE busconnection 393.

FIGS. 21A, 21B also indicate the occurrence and resolution of acollision in accordance with one embodiment of a collision arbitrationscheme which utilizes the circuit 395 illustrated in FIG. 22. It isunderstood that the receiver/transmitter circuit 395 shown in FIG. 22may be used in either a dedicated mode or a multiplexed mode ofoperation. In a dedicated mode, a receiver/transmitter circuit 395 isconnected to each of the TRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT connections(i.e., three individual circuits 395). In a multiplexed mode, a singlereceiver/transmitter circuit 395 is selectively connected to any of theTRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT connections.

A timing diagram which characterizes the operation of thereceiver/transmitter circuit 395 is provided in FIGS. 23A-23C. Thecircuit shown in FIG. 22 constitutes a tri-state, open collector,digital transceiver, where the active state is represented by a logic 0(e.g., ground), and an open/inactive state is represented by a logical 1(e.g., V.sub.CC).

If the cross-connect circuits at both ends of a TRACE bus connectiontransmit the same signal (i.e., a 1 or 0), then no difference betweenthe transmitted and received signals is detected by the collisiondetection circuit 395, and a collision is deemed not to have occurred.However, if both circuits transmit opposite signals, a collision will bedeemed to have occurred by one of the circuits. The cross-connectcircuit transmitting the logic “0” will be given priority and ispermitted to continue transmitting its ID code, while the partnercircuit will detect a signal mismatch or collision condition and isprevented from further broadcasting its ID code. Transmitting a logic“0” overrides the state of the bus and pulls the bus “low.”

It is noted that the receiver 397 of the collision detection circuit 395is active during times when the transmitter 399 is inactive (i.e., timest.sub.1, t.sub.2, t.sub.3, t.sub.4, . . . t.sub.n). During the time inwhich the receiver 397 is active, such as time duration t.sub.1 forexample, the receiver 397 monitors the TRACE bus connection 393 in orderto detect the presence of a transmission thereover. The receiver 397typically samples the TRACE bus connection 393 repetitively during eachtime period of transmitter inactivity. In this manner, a listen beforetransmit approach to effecting communications between cross-connectedcircuits is realized.

As was discussed previously, all circuits having IDs loaded in theTransmit Table (i.e., a circuit's transmit FIFO 620, 622, or 624) forall shelves within the cross-connect system begin transmitting 370 theirrespective IDs in parallel. In particular, each circuit transmits 371its ID information one bit at a time from its associated transmitterFIFO 618. For example, and with reference to FIGS. 21A, 21B, if bothcircuits A and B transmit 371 a logic 1 as the first bit of theirrespective IDs from their respective transmit FIFOs 381, 389, and bothcircuits A and B receive 372 a logic 1 bit in their respective receiveFIFOs 383, 393, no difference between the transmitted and receivedsignals is detected 373 by the collision detection circuits 385, 387. Assuch, no collision is deemed to have occurred. The same result occurswhen both circuits A and B transmit 371 a logic 0 as the second bit oftheir respective IDs. Subsequent ID bits transmitted by circuits A and Bare similarly tested 374, 375.

Because each circuit ID with a cross-connect system is unique, acollision will eventually occur on the TRACE bus connection 393 couplingcircuits A and B during the scanning operation. For example, if circuitA transmits 371 a logic 0 as the third bit of its ID and circuit Btransmits 371 a logic 1 as the third bit if its ID, a mismatch betweentransmitted and received ID signals is detected by the collisiondetection circuit 387. In accordance with the collision arbitrationscheme of this embodiment, the circuit transmitting a logic 0 is givenpriority (i.e., overrides the bus state) over the circuit transmitting alogic 1.

As such, circuit A is permitted to continue transmitting its IDundisturbed. Circuit B, on the other hand, is instructed to halt allsubsequent ID transmissions during the existence of the presentconnection (i.e., no change in hard-wired or patch connection status),and is thereafter identified as a “receiver” circuit. It is noted thatcircuit A continues to operate as a “transmitter” circuit during thecurrent and subsequent scanning operations, although no formal procedureto identify same is required.

Importantly, the circuit ID bit information stored in the “receiver”circuit, which in this illustrative example is circuit B, preciselycorresponds to the circuit ID bit information transmitted by the“transmitter” circuit, in this case circuit A. Since only the receivercircuit reports circuit ID information for both transmitting andreceiving circuits to the main computer, it is significant that thecollision arbitration scheme of the instant scanning methodology isnon-destructive, and ensures that the transmitting circuit ID andrelated information is received with 100% integrity.

As was previously mentioned, no further collisions will occur over theTRACE bus connection established between circuits A and B, assuming thatno change in hard-wired or patch connectivity occurs, because only thetransmitter circuit is permitted to transmit its circuit ID and otherinformation during subsequent scanning operations. Using this scheme,all circuit connections will be known within the time it takes totransmit a single circuit ID bit string, regardless of the size of thecross-connect system.

Under nominal operating conditions, there is generally no need for areceiving circuit to ever transmit its ID information as long as thepresent connection is maintained. In the special case where a pair ofpatch cords have been incorrectly patched to different circuits, thereexists the possibility that two simultaneous circuit IDs may be receivedon the two patch paths connected to the common circuit. In aconfiguration in which a single receiver of the shelf controller ismultiplexed across the three circuit paths of the circuit, namely theTRACE, Patch IN, and Patch OUT paths, such a misconnection condition maybe detected and remedied automatically by the shelf controller. In sucha case, the shelf controller detects that there is a communicationserror on both the Patch IN and Patch OUT paths.

In response, the shelf controller switches the receiver multiplexer toconnect with one of the two patch paths, and waits for the next circuitID to arrive. During the ensuing dead time, the shelf controller thentransmits the selected patch path's circuit ID, so as to cause thepartner circuit at the opposing end of the patch cord to ceasetransmitting its ID information in a manner previously described.

Turning now to FIGS. 24-25, there is illustrated in flow diagram form analternative embodiment of a methodology by which connection informationis acquired for all connections established through a cross-connectsystem. Upon receiving a broadcast command received from a main computer380, the Transmit Table (e.g., transmit TRACE FIFOs 620) is loaded 382with TRACE ID information for a first set of circuits for each shelf. Byway of example, if N represents the total number of circuits comprisingeach shelf, then the first half or N/2 circuits have their associatedTRACE IDs loaded into the Transmit Table. It is noted that circuitgroupings other than N/2, such as N/4 or N/10 for example, may beemployed.

The operations of steps 386 through 406 are then executed for eachcircuit of the first set of circuits. These steps are substantially thesame as steps 304-323 discussed previously with respect to FIGS. 17-18and, for purposes of brevity, will not be further described. When thefirst half or N/2 of circuits within the respective shelves have beenprocessed 410, the Transmit Table is loaded with TRACE IDs of the secondhalf or N/2 of circuits 384. After processing the second half ofcircuits in a similar manner as that described hereinabove, the scanningoperation depicted in FIG. 25 is executed 408, the completion of whichis subsequently reported 412 to the main computer.

FIG. 25 depicts a number of process steps involved in the transmissionof circuit ID information in accordance with the second scanningapproach. The second scanning methodology involves a learning phaseduring which the system determines whether and when each circuit isauthorized to transmit or receive ID information within the overallscanning period. A scanning period within the context of thisillustrative embodiment is made up of 2 to N transmit cycles, where Nequals the number of bits in the circuit ID.

During the learning phase, for example, circuit number 1 of shelf 1 forall equipment bays broadcasts its ID information to its partner. Thisprocess is repeated for circuits 2 through circuits N/2 for all Ncircuits in all shelves within the equipment bay. Within the transmitperiod of 2-to-N/2 cycles, all of the potential 1-to-N circuits within ashelf will have broadcasted their current ID information for the entiresystem.

During the learning phase, data collisions could occur when two circuitsbroadcast their respective circuit IDs at the same moment in time. Byway of example, this would typically happen when circuit 1 of shelf 1,bay 1 is connected to circuit 1, shelf 1 of bay 2. The learningmethodology in accordance with this embodiment is designed to minimizethe number of collisions. These data collisions are resolved through ashelf number priority scheme, such that a circuit with a lower shelfnumber becomes a “receiver,” and the circuit with the higher shelfnumber becomes the “transmitter,” or vice versa.

Assuming that at least one collision has occurred and based on thelength of the shelf ID, the learning phase may require a minimum of twotransmit cycles to complete, plus additional time for collisionresolution. It is estimated that the total elapsed learning time islikely to be less than 50 milliseconds based on a transmission speed of19,200 bps.

After completion of the learning phase, the shelf controller will havedetermined the particular transmit cycle within which each circuit ispermitted to transmit or receive data without causing a collision. Allof the connection status information is reported back to the maincomputer over a data bus during this learning phase. The system thenenters an operating or monitoring phase, wherein transmission of circuitidentification information will continue to occur in the 2-to-N transmitcycles so as to continually verify circuit connection status. A keydistinction between the monitoring and learning phases within thecontext of this embodiment is that collisions may only occur during themonitoring phase if there is a change in connection status, and onlychanges in such status are reported to the main computer.

After initiating 420 the scanning procedure illustrated in FIG. 25, eachconnection is monitored to detect the presence of a transmission overthe connection. If a transmission is detected 422 on a connectionassociated with a particular circuit identified in the Transmit Table,the transmitting circuit is prevented from making further transmissionsand its ID is removed 424 from the appropriate transmit FIFO 618 of theTransmit Table.

For those circuits which do not detect transmission activity, the shelfcontroller instructs all such circuits to begin transmitting 426 theleast significant bit of the shelf ID prior to the circuit ID in anattempt to minimize the occurrence of a collision early on in thescanning process. As with other scanning procedures, shelf and circuitID information may be transmitted over several circuit pathssimultaneously, such as the TRACE conductor or the Patch IN and OUTshield conductors.

If a collision is detected 430 on any circuit connection, the implicatedcircuits are instructed to halt 432 their respective transmissions, anda collision arbitration operation is initiated in the following manner.If the shelf/circuit ID bit transmitted by a particular circuit is equalto 0, as is tested at step 434, this circuit is permitted to transmit438, 440 a subsequent shelf/circuit ID bit, while its partner circuit isdelayed 436 from transmitting its shelf/circuit ID bit by one bitperiod.

It is noted that a bit period within this context is defined as aduration of time required to transmit one of a total of N shelf/circuitID bits, where N represents the total number of bits constituting theshelf/circuit ID. The process of steps 430-440 continue for subsequentbit periods until a difference between the shelf/circuit IDs of thetransmitting pair of circuits is detected. The bit period during whichno collision is detected is stored, and the transmission ofshelf/circuit IDs by the circuits continues until the entire ID bitstreams of both circuits have been transmitted 442.

To summarize, collisions are resolved by using the shelf and circuit IDsto decide which circuit of the connection has higher priority. Once theinitial learning phase has been completed, the scanning algorithm willcontinue to transmit data in 2-to-N transmit cycles. This provides forthe continued verification of all connections. Should any collisionsoccur, they will be resolved in the above-described manner. Since thescanning of all shelves proceeds in parallel, the overall scan time isnot affected by the total size of the cross-connect system.

FIG. 24 illustrates that the operation of loading a Transmit Table withcircuit ID information takes into consideration whether various bantamjacks are occupied, such as the Patch IN/OUT jacks, in which caseadditional circuits IDs are loaded into the Transmit Table for thesecircuit paths. A Transmit Table may be loaded with between one and Ncircuits of information for each shelf.

In accordance with one exemplary scenario, the Transmit Table may beloaded with information concerning all circuits, as was previouslydescribed with respect to FIGS. 17-18 or, alternatively, loaded withinformation concerning circuits 1 through N/2, as was described abovewith respect to FIG. 24. Another scenario may involve loading theTransmit Table with a single circuit ID for each shelf (e.g., circuit 1for shelf 1, circuit 2 for shelf 2, etc.). After the Transmit Table isloaded in this manner, the scanning operation depicted in FIG. 25 may beinitiated. When the scanning operation is completed for the first set ofcircuit IDs, the load Transmit Table function will resume with loadingof the next set of circuit IDs and a subsequent scanning operation willbe performed using this next set of circuit IDs. This process isrepeated until all circuit IDs have been transmitted.

Referring now to FIG. 26, there is illustrated a third embodiment bywhich connection information is determined for all circuits within across-connect system. In accordance with this embodiment, the shelfcontrollers sequentially scan through all circuits of each shelf in sucha way as to preclude the occurrence of a collision. The advantages ofavoiding collisions, however, come at the cost of an increase inscanning time when compared with the relatively short scan timesassociated with the above-described first and second scanningapproaches.

The third scanning approach depicted in FIG. 26 includes a learningphase and a monitoring phase. During the learning phase, which isinitiated upon receiving 450 a broadcast command from the main computer,the system determines the particular transmit cycles of a scanningperiod during which each circuit is authorized to transmit its circuitID information. Within the context of this embodiment, a scanning periodis defined by a number of scanning cycles, which typically correspondsto the number of individual circuits comprising each shelf, (e.g., amaximum of 84 circuits per shelf corresponds to 84 scanning cycles perscanning period).

During the learning phase, circuit 1 of shelf 1 for all equipment baysbroadcasts its ID to its partner circuit. Circuit 2 of shelf 2 for allequipment bays does the same. This is repeated for circuits 3 to n forall m shelves within each equipment bay. Assuming a scanning period of84 cycles, for example, all of the potential 1-to-84 circuits within ashelf will have broadcasted their circuit IDs for the entire systemduring the scanning period.

While in the learning phase, data collisions could occur when twocircuits broadcast their respective circuit IDs at the same moment intime. This would happen when circuit 1 of shelf 1, bay 1 is connected tocircuit 1, shelf 1 of bay 2. These data collisions are resolved througha serial number priority scheme such that the circuit with the lowestserial number priority is moved to a different scanning cycle within thescanning period of 84 cycles. The learning phase will thus take twocomplete periods containing 84 data scanning cycles each. Once thelearning phase is completed, each circuit will know which cycle it ispermitted to transmit in without causing a collision. All of theconnection status information is reported back to the main computer overthe data bus during the learning phase.

After receiving 450 a broadcast command from the main computer, each ofthe shelf controllers selects a respective first circuit 452 housedwithin the shelf. The receiver is disabled for the selected circuit, andshelf ID and circuit ID information is transmitted 456 to the TRACEconductor. If the Patch IN jack is occupied 458, the shelf ID number,circuit number, and Patch IN occupied information is transmitted 460over the patch cord shield conductor.

If the Patch OUT jack is occupied 462, the shelf ID number, circuitnumber, and Patch OUT information is transmitted 464 over the patch cordshield conductor. The receiver of the selected circuit is then enabled456, and the shelf controller selects another circuit for processing468, 471. The scanning steps 454-471 are repeated until all circuitshave been processed, after which the bay controller reports completionof the operation 470 to the main computer.

Referring to FIGS. 27 and 28, a monitoring procedure is described whichmay be implemented by each shelf controller as a means of locallydetecting and reporting changes in connection status for all connectionsestablished through the shelf controller. A connection change mayconstitute the establishment of a new connection or the removal of anexisting connection, irrespective of whether the connection is ahard-wired or patch connection. Monitoring of all connections to detectany such changes proceeds simultaneously with respect to the scanningoperations described previously. Table 2 provided above provides anexample of various types of information which may be maintained andupdated in the local database of a shelf controller.

After all of the initial connections have been reported, the shelfcontrollers continuously monitor their respective connections to detectand report only changes in connection status, thereby reducing theamount of data that is communicated to the main computer and stored inthe database.

Referring to FIG. 27, each shelf controller interacts with its localdatabase, supported in a memory of the shelf controller, which containsconnection information only for those circuits connected within theshelf. In determining whether any circuit connections have been lost,each of the shelf controllers selects a first local database entry 500and determines 502 whether the selected connection has been refreshed,such that continuity is verified with no change in connection status. Ifso, the shelf controller selects 508 the next circuit entry in the localdatabase.

If a particular connection has not been refreshed 502, the localdatabase entry for the affected circuit is cleared 504, and the loss ofconnection information is reported 506 to the main computer. The loss ofconnection verification procedure depicted in FIG. 27 typically operateson a continuous basis, but may be selectively executed by the shelfcontroller or the main computer.

The process steps depicted in FIG. 28 describe a general methodology bywhich new connections with respect to a particular shelf are detected.If a message or partner circuit ID is received 520 for a particularcircuit within a shelf, the shelf controller determines whetherconnection information for the circuit currently exists in the localdatabase 522. If so, monitoring continues. If the connection informationdoes not exist in the local database for the circuit, a local databaseentry is created 524 for this circuit, and the new connectioninformation is reported to the main computer 526 when the shelfcontroller is next polled. The new connection monitoring functiontypically operates on a continuous basis, but may be selectivelyexecuted by the shelf controller or the main computer.

An important aspect of the present invention concerns a graphical userinterface which permits a user to interact with the cross-connect systemat many levels. Cooperation between the cross-connect database and theGUI provides features and functionality heretofore unavailable inconventional cross-connect systems. By way of example, and not oflimitation, the graphical user interface provides a user the opportunityto participate in the management of all circuit records, and providesthe ability to visually trace circuits from one system to another. Auser is also given the opportunity to graphically display networktopology as it relates to the cross-connect system or the scanning bus,and permits a user to pre-define and control patch sequences forrestoring critical and other circuits in response to network outages.

The graphical user interface in combination with the cross-connectdatabase permits continuous monitoring of all cross-connect circuitswithin a central office or telecommunications network, and provides nearreal-time connection status information with regard to changes made toany of the cross-connections. A number of database reports relating tocircuit changes, customer names, circuit types, and the like may also begenerated by a user. Other information including the definition ofcentral office equipment connections, physical connection routes,termination and intermediate splice locations, and related transmissionrate information may also be obtained and presented to the user via thegraphical user interface.

Provided below in Table 4 are descriptions of various screens ofinformation which may be obtained using a graphical user interface incombination with a cross-connect database in accordance with the presentinvention.

TABLE 4 SCREENS DESCRIPTION Directory Tree A directory tree display ofthe Cities/Central Office/Floor/Bay information that is currentlydefined within the cross-connect system Bay Configuration A setup screento add/configure bays & shelves Bay Display A graphical representationof the installed bay, showing a bit- mapped view of the model type, withshelves as provisioned for that bay Shelf Display A graphicalrepresentation of the cross- connect shelf showing a bit-mapped view ofthe model type Connection Status An indication by a bright color thatthe circuit within the shelf display is provisioned (i.e.cross-connected) as opposed to idle. Port Display A screen that showsthe “FROM-TO” database connection information for the port clickedMulti-window As each screen is clicked for Bay Display, Shelf and Port,the windows overlap one another. All windows being displayed are to bereal-time updated - even if they are in the background Setup-configure Amulti-layer screen that allows the user to identify new equipment bays,shelves or circuits that have been physically installed. In addition,even though cross-connect information is automatically sensed, the userwill have the ability to define naming conventions used, and to entercertain database circuit specific information. Import/Export Screens andfunctionality are required to allow the user to import and exportcross-connect database data to or from other sources Warning Display Atany time that a connection is changed, either disconnected or added, apop-up warning window is activated at the upper most level along with asound alert (user selectable). Several levels of warning screens aredefined - and all are required to be selectively turned on/off by theuser.

A directory tree, such as that shown in FIG. 29 for example, may beactivated by a user to display cities, central office, floor, bay, andother related information that is currently defined within thecross-connect system. A bay configuration and display capability is alsoprovided, such as that depicted in FIG. 30, in which a set-up screen maybe used to add and configure new and existing bays and shelves. Agraphical representation of the installed bay, showing a bit-mapped viewof the model type, with shelves as provisioned for each bay, may also beviewable through use of the graphical user interface.

A graphical representation of a cross-connect shelf, such as thatdepicted in FIG. 31, provides a bit-mapped view of the shelfconfiguration and model type. Connection status information is alsoviewable, such as through a screen similar to that provided in FIG. 32,in which pertinent circuit identification and connection information maybe viewed and edited. Circuit-to-circuit connection information may beviewed from a screen, such as that shown in FIGS. 33 and 34, by whichall intermediate connections and connection equipment may be presentedto a user.

Multiple window layouts and overlap configurations may be selected, inwhich each screen may be clicked on and off for bay, shelf, andport/circuit displays. The windows may overlap with one another, and allwindows being displayed are updated on a near real-time basis, even ifthey are displayed in the background. Further, a multi-layer screen maybe provided that allows the user to identify new equipment bays,shelves, or circuits that have been physically installed. In addition,even though cross-connect information is automatically sensed, the usermay be given the ability to define naming conventions to be used, andmay enter certain circuit-specific information into the database.Multiple levels of security is also provided which may be implemented ina manner analogous to various known multi-level network securityschemes.

FIG. 35 illustrates connection information for a user selectedcross-connection. It can be seen that a comprehensive set of dataconcerning each and every connection in a cross-connect system ismaintained in the cross-connect database. FIG. 36 depicts a screen ofthe connection data shown in FIG. 35 which has been automaticallymodified to reflect the current state of the connection. In particular,the connection data shown in FIG. 36 includes currently active patchconnection information in the foreground, and the currently inactivehard-wired connection information in the background.

Import/export screens and functionality may be provided which permits auser to import and export cross-connect database information to or fromother sources, such as spreadsheets and other application programs.Also, connection change information indicating new or disconnectedconnections may be presented to the user through pop-up warning windowsalong with user-selectable audio alarms. Several levels of warningscreens may be defined, which may be selectively turned on or off by auser.

The graphical user interface may be used to develop any number of patchpending files which, as discussed previously, define circuit patchesrequired to maintain key connection integrity during network outages.Various outage scenarios may be simulated using the GUI, and a remedialpatch pending file developed to address each particular outage scenario.The efficacy of a selected patch pending operation may be simulated byexecuting same in response to a particular simulated outage. The GUImay, of course, be used to execute an appropriate patch pending file inthe event of an actual network outage.

A hand-held or otherwise portable computer may be used to interface withthe intelligent cross-connect system for purposes of enhancingdiagnostic, patching, and connection verification operations, forexample. The portable unit includes an interface for physicallyconnecting with the scanning bus, such as at the EIA-485 bus, andcommunicates with bay controllers and shelf controllers of interest. Oneparticular operation well-suited for the hand-held unit involvescontrolling TRACE LEDs of selected cross-connect circuits as an aid toeffecting a patch sequencing procedure. The hand-held unit may be usedto perform a number of other useful operations through cooperation withthe main computer during execution of a patch pending file.

The foregoing description of the various embodiments of the inventionhas been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. Itis not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to theprecise form disclosed. For example, the scanning systems and methodsdescribed herein may be implemented in digital, digital/analog hybrid,and fiber optic or fiber hybrid cross-connect systems. Manymodifications and variations are possible in light of the aboveteaching. It is intended that the scope of the invention be limited notby this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a plurality of portsconfigured to establish a plurality of physical information connectionsand a plurality of physical scanning connections using cables, whereineach information connection is associated with a respective scanningconnection and wherein each scanning connection is separate from therespective information connection associated with that scanningconnection; wherein the system is configured to selectively transmit arespective scanning signal from each port over a respective one of thescanning connections; wherein the system is configured to selectivelyreceive a respective scanning signal at each port from a respective oneof the scanning connections; and wherein connection information isderived from the scanning signals communicated over the scanningconnections.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the system comprises apatch panel.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one informationconnection and associated scanning connection are established using apatch cord.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the patch cord comprisesat least one of a twisted-pair cable and a fiber optic cable
 5. Thesystem of claim 3, wherein the patch cord comprises a separate conductorover which the respective scanning connection is established.
 6. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of ports is configuredto establish a respective scanning connection by physically contactingat least one conductor associated with a communication line that isterminated at that port.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein each port hasassociated therewith a respective circuit.
 8. The system of claim 1,wherein the scanning signal encodes an identifier.
 9. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the scanning connections are used to create a scanningbus.
 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the system comprises a pluralityof shelves, each shelf comprises a subset of the ports in the system.11. A method of identifying connections established using a system atwhich communication connections are made, the method comprising:establishing a respective physical information connection and arespective physical scanning connection at each of a plurality of portsincluded in the system, wherein the respective information connectionfor each of the plurality of ports is associated with the respectivescanning connection for that port and wherein the respective scanningconnection for each of the plurality of ports is separate from theinformation connection for that port; selectively receiving a respectivescanning signal at each of the plurality of ports from a respective oneof the scanning connections; and deriving connection information fromthe scanning signals communicated over the scanning connections.
 12. Themethod of claim 11, wherein the system comprises a patch panel.
 13. Themethod of claim 11, wherein at least one information connection andassociated scanning connection are established using a patch cord. 14.The method of claim 13, wherein the patch cord comprises at least one ofa twisted-pair cable and a fiber optic cable.
 15. The method of claim13, wherein the patch cord comprises a separate conductor over which therespective scanning connection is established.
 16. The method of claim11, wherein establishing the respective physical information connectionand the respective physical scanning connection at each of the pluralityof ports included in the system comprises: establishing the respectivescanning connection by physically contacting at least one conductorassociated with a communication line that is terminated at that port.17. The method of claim 11, wherein each port has associated therewith arespective circuit.
 18. The method of claim 11, further comprisingencoding an identifier in each scanning signal.
 19. The method of claim11, wherein the scanning connections are used to create a scanning bus.20. A system comprising: a plurality of ports at which communicationconnections can be made using cables; a plurality of connectioncircuits, each of the connection circuits associated with a respectiveone of the ports, wherein each connection circuit is configured toreceive a signal encoding identifier information, the signal receivedfrom a respective cable connected to the port associated with thatconnection circuit and the signal received separately from thecommunication connection for that port; and a controller communicativelycoupled to the connection circuits, wherein the controller is configuredto receive the signals from the connection circuits; wherein connectioninformation is derived from the identifier information encoded on thesignals.
 21. The system of claim 20, wherein the system comprises apatch panel.
 22. The system of claim 20, wherein the cables comprise apatch cord.
 23. The system of claim 22, wherein the patch cord comprisesat least one of a twisted-pair cable and a fiber optic cable
 24. Thesystem of claim 20, wherein each connection circuit is configured tophysically contact at least one conductor of a respective cableconnected to the port associated with that connection circuit to receivethe respective signal from that cable.
 25. The system of claim 20,wherein the system comprises a plurality of shelves, each shelfcomprises a subset of the ports in the system.
 26. A method comprising:making communication connections at a plurality of ports using cables;receiving, at each of a plurality of connection circuits, a signalencoding identifier information, each of the connection circuitsassociated with a respective one of the ports, the signal received froma respective cable connected to the port associated with that connectioncircuit and the signal received separately from the communicationconnection for that port; receiving the signals from the connectioncircuits at a controller that is communicatively coupled to theconnection circuits; and deriving connection information from theidentifier information encoded on the signals.
 27. The method of claim26, wherein the plurality of ports are included in a patch panel. 28.The method of claim 26, wherein the cables comprise a patch cord. 29.The method of claim 28, wherein the patch cord comprises at least one ofa twisted-pair cable and a fiber optic cable
 30. The method of claim 26,further comprising: physically contacting, at each connection circuit,at least one conductor of a respective cable connected to the portassociated with that connection circuit to receive the respective signalfrom that cable.